With the early entry deadline for the 2024 NBA Draft in the rearview mirror, we now have a clearer picture of the Gonzaga Bulldogs’ roster for the 2024-25 college basketball season.
The team’s lone representative at the NBA Draft Combine — Pepperdine transfer Michael Ajayi — withdrew his name from draft consideration to play out his final year of college eligibility with the Zags. The 6-foot-7 All-WCC wing had already signed a financial aid agreement with the school while also going through the pre-draft process. Now that his transition to Spokane is official, the Bulldogs are likely a top-10 team heading into next season.
Here’s a look at the current 2024-25 roster.
Returners:
G Ryan Nembhard (senior)
G Nolan Hickman (senior)
G Joe Few (redshirt junior)
G Joaquim Aruz-Moore (sophomore)
F Ben Gregg (senior)
F Braden Huff (redshirt sophomore)
F Dusty Stromer (sophomore)
F Jun Seok Yeo (junior)
F Steele Venters (redshirt junior)
C Graham Ike (redshirt senior)
Once the transfer portal officially closed, the men’s basketball team’s social media account gave fans a glimpse at next season’s squad with a team photo captioned “We back.” Pictured were the 10 players listed above while wearing the royal blue throwback uniforms in the team locker room. No last-minute surprises or entries into either the NBA Draft or portal resulted in Mark Few returning seven of his top eight scorers from last season’s Sweet 16 team.
Very few programs will return as much talent and experience as Gonzaga will next season. According to Bart Torvik, the Bulldogs have the fifth-highest return rate in the county based off the percentage of minutes played from last season (81.4%). No team that made the 2024 NCAA Tournament can say they brought back that much talent.
Ike has a strong case to be the preseason West Coast Conference Player of the Year after leading the league in scoring and field goal percentage in conference play. Especially with Nembhard feeding him the ball again in pick-and-rolls, Ike has even more space to operate on the low block with shooters surrounding him on the perimeter. The Nembhard-Ike connection could be the Zags’ bread and butter on offense.
Hickman is coming off a career year as a junior. With his role firmly cemented, he won’t have the burden of adjusting his game to fit next to Nembhard in the backcourt.
Gregg and Huff round out another deep frontcourt rotation for Few. The offense took a major leap forward with Gregg in the starting lineup toward the latter half of the season. On top of his added responsibilities on the court, expect the 6-foot-10 senior to take on a leadership role as one of the many veterans in the locker room.
“Ben Gregg is somebody that when he calls people out or says something, people are going to react to that,” Few said on Gonzaga Nation.
DEPARTURES:
G Luka Krajnovic (transfer portal)
F Colby Brooks (transfer portal)
F Pavle Stosic (transfer portal)
F Anton Watson (graduated)
There’s not a one-for-one replacement out there for a player like Watson, who’s been Gonzaga’s problem-solver on both ends of the floor for the greater part of his five-year career. His departure will likely be felt in many ways, especially on the defensive end of the floor where he often was tasked with guarding the opponent’s best offensive player. Without a true defensive anchor on the roster, it’ll require a collective group effort to fill that void left by Watson.
It’s unknown how much playing time would’ve gone either to Stosic or Krajnovic given how the roster has shaped out for next season.
NEWCOMERS:
G Khalif Battle (Arkansas grad transfer)
G Immanuel Innocenti (Tarleton State transfer)
G Braeden Smith (Colgate transfer, will redshirt)
G Cade Orness (freshman, preferred walk-on)
F Michael Ajayi (Pepperdine transfer)
F Noah Haaland (JUCO transfer, preferred walk-on)
The Zags reeled in some big catches from the transfer portal pond. Few and the coaching staff utilized the portal to round out some areas for growth based on last season — 3-point shooting, scoring, defense and overall depth.
Battle provides quite the scoring pop after he averaged 29.6 points over his last seven games with the Razorbacks. The 6-foot-5 guard figures to rotate in with Nembhard and Hickman in the backcourt, though there’s potential for him to share the court with the two All-WCC guards in certain situations that require Gonzaga to go with a smaller lineup.
The same goes for Innocenti. His presence will be felt greater on the defensive end of the floor, as the Italian wing can defend multiple positions and gives the Zags a perimeter player who can switch screens effectively. Innocenti was WAC All-Defense and WAC All-Freshman this past season.
“I really like what I see in bringing him to this roster,” Dan Dickau said of Innocenti on Gonzaga Nation. “If you’re willing to go challenge for playing time at a high program like a Gonzaga, you’re built with the makeup of wanting to go get it.”
Ajayi adds even more scoring as a 6-foot-7 wing who shot 47.0% from 3-point range this past season. The Pepperdine transfer led the WCC in scoring with 17.2 points to go with 9.9 rebounds per game. After turning some heads at the NBA Draft Combine, a lot of eyes will be on Ajayi as a senior on a top 10 team in the country.
Haaland and Orness likely won’t see the floor — fellow walk-on Aruz-Moore didn’t see the floor as a freshman last season — but they’ll still get valuable reps in practice.
